Snowpack Approaches Normal, Extraordinary Women Awards

Snowpack depths are near normal across Colorado, but reservoir storage in Southwest Colorado is 36% below normal for this time of year. Frontier Airlines will offer service to Dallas this summer. And learn who will be honored, as this year’s Extraordinary Women, as part of Women’s History Month. You’re watching the Local News Roundup, brought to you by Pop’s Truck and RV Center and ServiceMaster Restore. I’m Wendy Graham Settle. The snowpack in the San Miguel, Dolores, Animus and San Juan River SNOTEL network is at 96% of normal as of March 1st, according to the Natural Resources Conservation Service. However, reservoir storage in the the same area is only 64% of normal. Normal is the median snowpack based on data collected from SNOTEL sites between 1991 and 2020. The amount of snow and the water it holds, is far better than the same time last year, when snowpack was at 70% of normal. Hydrologists for the Colorado snow survey still expect lower runoff flows this spring because of several years of low summer precipitation, high summer temperatures and dry soils. They also noted that existing historic low storage levels, in Lake Mead and Powell, could affect Southwest Colorado water resources and decisions for much of the Colorado River Basin. To see a detail list of SNOTEL data, visit nrcs.usda.gov and search for SNOTEL. Frontier Airlines has announced it will offer seasonal, once-a-week, nonstop flights from Durango to Dallas, beginning Saturday, May 28th. Dallas departures will be on Saturdays and will land at Dallas Fort Worth International Airport. Frontier also will continue service on Thursdays and Sundays to Denver International Airport. American Airlines also offers service to Dallas and Phoenix and United Airlines offers service to Denver. To learn more about Frontier, visit flyfrontier.com. To learn more about flights out of Durango, visit flydurango.com. The Women’s Resource Center will wrap up Women’s History Month activities with its annual Extraordinary Women Awards dinner, scheduled for Thursday, March 30th at the Double Tree Inn. This year’s honorees are Nurse Practitioner Karen Zink, Founder and Owner of Southwest Women’s Health, and Mariel Balbuena, Executive Director for the La Plata Family Centers Coalition. Zink will be honored for her recent work in organizing volunteer community vaccination clinics, and for her support of a new bachelor’s of science degree in nursing at Fort Lewis College. Zink’s nomination entry also noted her longtime support and mentorship of nurses new to the profession and her leadership in the medical community. Balbuena will be honored for her work to empower women and their families through the La Plata Family Centers Coalition. She helped to develop the “Parent Leader Network” for women to support each other with food security, health and economic sufficiency. And she also led an innovative participatory grant writing process, to give voice and choice to women in how the $478,000 Colorado Health Foundation Grant would be used to promote and sustain women in healthy lifestyle and work endeavors through food production. Tickets for the dinner are $75 each. The evening begins at 5:30 PM. All attendees must show proof that they’ve been fully vaccinated. Visit wrcdurango.org and purchase tickets for more information. Could you use an intern to bolster your workforce? Durango High School, The Business Education Connection, The La Plata County Economic Development Alliance, and The Durango Mirrors Youth Advisory Commission, will host The J.I.V.E. Fair from 1:00 to 4:30 PM on Tuesday, April 5th, at The La Plata County Fairgrounds. Jive stands for, “Jobs, Internships and Volunteer Experiences, that help students explore work and career opportunities. Businesses will be provided a table and chairs, and are encouraged to decorate their stations, provide applications and job opportunity information. Deadline to register is Thursday, March 30th. To learn more, visit the Alliance’s Facebook page at LaPlataEconomicDevelopmentAlliance. Thanks for watching this edition of the Local News Roundup. I’m Wendy Graham settle.

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